1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to telecommunications and, more particularly, to methods and systems for testing network conditions in a wireless communication system. The invention is particularly useful in testing radio frequency (RF) signal strength upon installation of an MMDS (Multi-channel Multipoint Distribution Service) transceiver dish at customer premises. However, the invention is equally applicable to test other parameters and in other scenarios as well.
2. Description of Related Art
MMDS can be used to provide broadband wireless connectivity to customer premises. In an MMDS system, a transmitting tower is placed at a high elevation and provides radio connectivity to multiple sites with a specified radius. At each site, a transceiver antenna (typically a dish) is installed on or alongside a building, at a fixed location, to receive signals downstream from the tower and to send signals upstream to the tower.
MMDS operates in the 2.1 to 2.7 GHz radio frequencies, with data rates up to 10 Mbps. However, each customer premises site will typically be assigned only a set pair of frequencies within this range. One frequency of the pair will be used for downstream transmissions to the site, and the other frequency will be used for upstream transmissions from the site.
MMDS may or may not require line-of-sight transmission between the customer premises site and the tower. However, in any event, obstacles such as land, buildings and other transmission systems between the site and the tower can interfere with MMDS transmission on certain frequencies and can thereby impact the quality of service. (Further, if signal quality diminishes for one MMDS user, that user might responsively increase transmission power, which could then adversely interfere with transmissions to and from other MMDS users.) Consequently, when a technician installs an MMDS dish at a customer premises site, a need exists to verify that the dish can adequately communicate with the tower.
Tools exist to measure the downstream signal strength at an MMDS customer premises site. For instance, Sencore, Inc. manufactures an installers-meter under model number QAM-B 962H. (See http://www.sencore.com/products/qamb962h.htm). An installation technician can direct such a tool to measure signal strength at particular frequencies, and the technician can then manually log the signal strength measurements made at those frequencies. In turn, the technician can then send those measurements to a main office. Unfortunately, however, this process presents opportunities for mistake or intentional error (e.g., measuring at the wrong frequency and/or recording the wrong results). Therefore, a need exists for an improved system.